Vanilla Foam & Green Tea
by crystalquins
Summary: In another world, Yui lives a transparent life- going to university in the morning and working at a café in the afternoon. By chance, the fates of her and a particular lethargic blonde young man cross and their feelings begin to blossom. ( T for future content - multiple chapters )
1. Earl Grey

_ They say fate works in odd ways._

Coffee grounds and syrup hung in the air, coating the back of Yui's throat as she shuffled in and out of the kitchen- serving some of the last customers of the day. She beamed a few niceties here and there, bowing as she left the glossy keyaki-wood table of a young woman who spoke vaguely of becoming a novelist. She was a regular, prone to ordering the Café au lait.

People came and went here, some willing to fraternize and others simply trying to escape their cubicles for a few measly minutes. The atmosphere the café held was warm and inviting, often seeing more regulars or people that returned in contrast to the aforesaid office-workers.

Yui had been working there for only a few months, though felt as if she had integrated quickly. While the manager Reiji was strict and the head-cook Laito was quite a character, she enjoyed working at the café. It felt like more of a home than she ever had after leaving her father. Even then, while she was always devout to him, their relationship become distant as the girl grew older. On the other side of the spectrum, the café was always bright and comfortable, and even if the staff were abrasive at times, they were livable. Smelling nice when she went home for the day was just a bonus.

As she passed the kitchen, the muffled sound of the head cook chiding one of his lackeys slipped from the doors. Laito generally was a laidback individual, but never seemed to get along well with the other cooks. Of course, he'd normally tease them if anything, but on his bad days he was known for throwing quite a fit. Today seemed like a prime example.

One of the other waiters, a smaller young man whom had become almost obscenely popular among high school girls, stood clacking away at the register, his eyes traveling back and forth from a receipt and the log the café kept for queued orders. Noticing Yui lingering behind him at last, he adjusted his glasses and vaguely motioned to her. "There is an order at table three..two people this time. Definitely not regulars. You should take them." With that, he returned his attention back to his work, idly brushing a stray strand of lavender hair from his face.

Yui scanned the room as subtly as she could before shuffling through her pockets for her notepad, spotting the two new customers as aforementioned. They were both men, perhaps a year or so older than herself. Most probably university students as well. Their visible personalities clashed, however; one being reserved and almost somnolent while the other fit the archetype of clamorous and rowdy perfectly. Hopefully they wouldn't be too much trouble serving- though it's not like Yui ever looked down on difficult customers.

With a pat to fluff her dress, then a struggle to secure a few stray wisps of hair, she at last left the safety of the counter and approaching the table with a warm '_いらっしゃいませ__!_'

"Welcome to Café Rosen! Today's specials include our French Toast & Chef's Omurice- which can be personalized upon your request. May I take your order..?"

The darker haired one of the two- who was the one emanating the rambunctious aura, practically jumped from the booth once the young woman finished reciting her lines, his thumb skimming straight to a specific place in the menu. "I'll have an order of Earl Grey and…is your cheesecake any good? If so, I'll get that! What about you, Neet?" He motioned to the fellow sitting opposite of him, staring almost impatiently. However, the blonde young man had a pair of earbuds in- showing little concern or even willingness to place an order. The other man huffed, waving his hand in dismissal and giving a look of exasperation. "Just ignore him. He's paying whether he buys something or not."

This response took Yui by surprise, though she gave a wobbly curtsey nonetheless and assured him that his order would be out soon. As she turned her heel, the same boisterous voice called out again- if it were any louder, she would've sworn it would have grabbed her wrist.

"Oi! Waitress? Can you make sure to bring extra sugar cubes?"

Again, she reassured the customer that she'd bring as many sugar cubes as needed and rushed back to the kitchen. Indeed, Laito had been giving the secondary chef, Ayato, an earful; the latter of whom had resorted to sulking in the farther reaches of the kitchen as Laito handled the saucers and cups near the sink.

"Ah- sorry for interrupting you! There are two orders from table three, a single early grey and a slice of cheesecake." Her voice chimed in non-falsified hesitancy. She couldn't avoid it, as it would mean making someone wait for their order, but she could almost feel Laito's bad mood seeping through the floor's tiling and coating the dishes. All the same, Laito gave a tepid smile in Yui's direction and nodded. "Anything else, Yui-chan..?" he implored, prodding Yui to save himself future hassle. "Well, there is a second person at said table, but..he refrained from ordering. There's a chance he'll ask for something later, in which case I'll handle whatever he needs." He gave another nod, unusually quiet for it nearing the end of his shift, and continued gently washing the dirtied cups.

Yui went straight to work following their brief interaction, brewing the tea before having to stop midway through- leaving a huffy Ayato to watch over things while she tended to the table, as they rang the small dining bell left at each buffet. "My apologies! May I help you?" This time, Yui directed her attention solely to the darker haired man, as the blonde continued to show little interest in anything aside from dozing off.

"Would you mind bringing out the sugar cubes now? The tea is taking too long." Sugar cubes alone? What an odd thing to ask for.. But, if she wanted to be tipped well, or receive her paycheck for that matter, she would comply. "Again, my apologies. I'll be right back with them." She turned again, ambling once more to the kitchen. The blonde happened to be looking up this time, whose glance Yui only met for half a second. Admittedly, she almost stumbled after realizing he had been looking at her; which was a tad absurd minding that that's what she had been trained to become accustomed to; however…

It was something in that brief gaze. That fraction of a glance.

Yui's heart gave a beat so loud that she couldn't even hear Ayato's incessant complaining as she went back into the kitchen, nor the continuance of his whining as she left with a small bowl of sugar cubes which she placed down infront of the duo. "Can I get you anything else?" she questioned with an airy tinge to her voice. Picking up a few of the sugar cubes from their confines and plopping them into his mouth, the only one of the two who had yet to respond shook his head, seemingly content with his current state of being. Yui nodded, curtsying again in the same monotonous pattern as she returned to the safety of the kitchen.

Laito and Ayato were once again at each other's necks, this time as result of Ayato's negligence to watch over Yui's tea for the single minute she was away. Of course, because of the high standards of quality that Café Rosen kept, the whole batch had to be scrapped and Yui was forced to rebrew everything. Once she finally finished- making sure to grab the slice of cheesecake that Laito set out for her, she rushed to the table in as courteous of a way that she could, only to find that the blonde sat alone. He was, however, awake this time, watching Yui with a bored expression.

"I'm sorry for the wait!" her voice flopped to a mere mumble as she served the orders, drenched in guilt while attempting her best not to show it. She gave a quick glance about the room following this, as if to catch a glimpse of wherever that other man had gone off to. "Ah? Your friend is still here, right?"

The blonde, who was still intently watching Yui, shook his head and spoke up for the first time. "He left. He said you took too long." She nodded dolefully, her stomach churning with wild vigor. "That's my fault, I apologise.. Shall I clear this away, then? You're paying, yes?"

He shook his head, reaching out and pulling the tea to himself. "I am paying, but I don't want my money to go to waste.." He grabbed a single sugar cube, placing it gently towards the center of the cup and stirring.

"Ah, well..unfortunately, we're closing for the day rather soon, sir."

"Shuu."

"I..beg your pardon?"

"My name is Shuu."

"Er-..we happen to be closing soon, Shuu.." Yui fidgeted with the hem of her dress. Never before had she squirmed under the scrutiny of any other customer. That is to say, never had she been so late regarding an order, either.

"Aren't you going to share your name as well..?"

With a weak smile, she shook her head. "My name is Yui."

Shuu took a sip of his tea, almost completely brushing her off.

Yui pursed her lips, her hands knotting around the wooden serving tray that the held to her chest. "I'll leave you be, then-"

_Wait._

His eyes were elsewhere, drifting off into the depths of his teacup most likely, though he had most definitely spoken up.

"..The tea tastes bad. Too sweet." He placed it back upon the saucer, pushing it outwards with a frown.

Yui's heart dropped once again. She cleared the table without a fuss, despite this- including the uneaten cheesecake, and scampered away to clean it off. Kanato should have taken that table after all…

She halfheartedly trashed the dessert, placing the dish in the sink and leaning against the counter with a heavy sigh. The day was almost over. One bad happening with a customer doesn't ruin everything, right?

With both Laito and Ayato nowhere to be seen (probably getting ready to leave, as rebrewing the second batch of tea took quite a while longer than she had anticipated), Yui resorted to checking back on Shuu. Remarkably enough, he was still there- though just standing up and preparing to leave.

She was hesitant to speak up at first, though tore through herself to muster up the courage to bid him farewell. "Thank you for coming to Café Rosen! Please come again." She bowed, hoping that it would in some way makeup for the mishaps. By the time she looked up, Shuu was half way out the door and contently on his way. She was crushed, her face flushing a nice shade of pink in embarrassment. Oh well. At least the day was over.

Yui continued about her business, not even bothering to check the table any further; being reminded of his stare would send her into another tremor of uncomfortable pain.

In the back room, she changed and brushed out her hair, lingering in front of the mirror momentarily longer than she usually would have.

_Just walk home now._

Yui steered herself from the dressing room and in the direction of the door without the thought of stopping so much as crossing her mind. She was simply going to go home now- go home and rest.

"Oi- Chichinashi. "

_What is it now..?_

"You're forgetting your tip."


	2. Black Coffee

**NOTE:** _Apologies for no update in quite a while! I've been busy with moving, school- a bunch of troublesome stuff. I'll try to update more frequently, though I can't promise dates.. Also- happy birthday(s) to the triplets!_

* * *

><p>The morning hours came all in a rush—a blaring alarm, a muffled and lethargic groan, and eventual shuffling of feet back and forth through cold hallways. The sun had yet to even come up, yet Yui stood staring bleary eyed at the door of her fridge in feeble attempt to entice her appetite to awake as well.<p>

_Little luck there._

Yui patted a few rampant hairs back into place before hooking her fingers around the milk jug and haphazardly plopping it on the counter, next trifling through the closet-sized pantry for a simple box of cereal. She saw no need to completely go out of her way today in regards of a meal—she saved that luxury for the weekend so there was something to look forward to, aside from free time, of course. With a yawn and a gentle rub of the eyes, she grabbed a bowl from the cabinet and set everything, soon enough settling down at the bar counter and eating quietly with a notebook full of scribbled lecture notes propped up at a vague distance. High school had left her in a blur, college suddenly squeezing itself into Yui's life as abruptly as the former left. Reaching adulthood—or bordering it, however one chose to look at it, also brought tension upon familial ties—particularly in the case of her father.

In her youth, Yui's father had been caring, nurturing—everything you'd expect a proper father to be. That was a time long gone, though. Maturity swooped in within a blink of an eye, and their relationship eroded.

She had been sent to a private catholic school in the middle of her second Senior High year; her father having need to leave elsewhere while also encouraging Yui that this was 'good for her'. By the time she entered university, the two hadn't had any form of contact. It wasn't extremely tragic; Yui loved him, yes, but for some reason she couldn't oppose their distance.

Upon finishing her rather stark meal, the time at last hit, and Yui rushed herself off to dress and then leave for her morning classes.

At least she was feeling a tad more awake now.

* * *

><p>"<em>I'm here!<em>"

Yui leaned herself against the doorway for a moment in attempt to catch her breath. She had missed the first bus near Café Rozen, thus leaving her to resort to a later one— a _30 minutes_ later one. However, she had picked up a habit of coming in early just for this situation; though she was still skimming it.

As quickly as she could, she scurried off to the back room to change into her uniform; something which was obligatory to all staff—even kitchen based ones. Her bubblegum-esque duffel bag was immediately placed on the floor as she entered, leaving a free hand to rummage through her locker.

Soon enough, she was completely changed, her rosary carefully tucked underneath her uniform as she combed through her hair one final time. She fiddled with a stray curl, frowning after a few minutes of burying it in other layers of hair before giving up and securing her things, then making her way out of the changing room.

"Oi, you're late. Reiji's looking for you."

Ayato leaned against the door to the kitchen, chewing thoughtfully on the remains of a takoyaki skewer as he watched Yui.

"Ah, really?! Thank you for telling me—" her voice shook on the latter note as she stood on her tiptoes and spied around the room, Ayato already retreating back into the kitchen confines.

Reiji was not hard to find; in fact, he was the one who happened upon Yui. His frown was unlike his usual lack of emotion—no, this time he seemed more irritated; more disappointed than he usually did. He pulled Yui off to the side, his grip as cold and secure as iron. Before a single word could escape his lips, her head bowed deeply, a blonde mess of curls hanging densely to the floor.

"Please forgive my lateness, Reiji-san. It's inexcusable and will not happen again."

Her head remain tilted forward until his response, and even then she kept her gaze averted down.

"Inexcusable, Miss Komori. I hope you understand that it shall be deducted from your pay, yes?"

Her breaths steadied and careful, Yui raised her head just enough for a nod to be apparent.

"…Well, if you understand that, we will be right to work. Taking more time to lecture you costs money, after all. Now go open the doors with Kanato—be mindful about it."

With a dismissal wave of his hand, Yui turned upon her heel and sought out the doors. Kanato already stood waiting; a rather distressed look plastered upon his face.

"You were late, Miss Yui." He mumbled briefly before propping the door open, cold air surging in and nipping at their legs.

Any reply she could have made would have been short lived, as the moment the café doors were widened, customers came pouring in. This time in particular, they were hosting a group of large numbers. Yui offered warm smiles and curtsied as the rest of the party made their way in before ushering them to their seats, Kanato bringing up the back.

As the guests situated themselves, idle chatter and banter passed back and forth; particularly from the younger girls staring bashfully at Yui's lavender-haired partner. He, however, remained indifferent, quickly shuffling Yui away to the door again before showing any sign of emotion—which in his case was a mild smile. With a sigh, she continued her duties, though her mind kept no pertinence. Instead, her curiosity piqued around her co-worker. He was certainly good at acting up the appearance around his clients, but never once had he shown a glimpse of the same attitude, let alone /spoken/ to his fellow employees. It was frustrating—even despite having worked there for months, that small phrase Kanato slipped just a minute ago was their first true exchange that wasn't along the lines of what to do or what table to grab.

Her shoulders dropped a tad in her thought, her mind wandering so far away that as she guided a customer to a booth, she stumbled right into a table.

Reiji was not going to be happy with her…

* * *

><p>Past a further ear nipping from Reiji and most of the day's customers, at last things were wrapping up. All Yui had to do was serve table 5, survive the half an hour or so they stayed, and then she'd be free to go home (with anticipated overtime the following week).<p>

Table 5 was tonight's host to a frequent guest—a skittish young man with a strong lean towards the hours and days Yui worked. He was almost perpetually nervous around her; voice shaking and looking anywhere but to her side. It was this which made him prone to staring at the menu excessively, linking on to regular items often enough that in reality; his menu wasn't truly needed.

His presence, however odd to other customers, actually was pleasant to Yui. Often times, he'd appear towards the end of her shift so they'd be free to fraternize to Reiji's expense. Their conversations ranged to school life, as they both attended the same university—him being an underclassman—, to even menial things like work at the café.

Upon realizing that it was indeed him sitting at her last table, Yui felt her tensions alleviate, taking no hesitancy to glide over to his table with a genuine—though bewildered, smile.

"Subaru..?" Yui blinked, slipping out the notepad secured in her apron. "I could have sworn you told me you were going on vacation…"

The young man gave a side-eyed glance up before shriveling up. "Er...I got sick the day we were supposed to be leaving, so I stayed behind.." He rubbed his neck grievously, his free hand shuffling the pre-placed menu closer towards Yui.

"Anyway..I'll have…plain black coffee."

Yui pursed her lips, her pen held carefully in place. "Is that all..? Are you sure you don't want anything..ah~ a bit more filling, I suppose?" she let out a brief, airy giggle at this, to which Subaru only seemed to shrink up and redden more at.

"..I'll go hurry and place your order, then."

* * *

><p>Time passed between the coffee dripping and Yui's anxiousness to return to the table which she felt surprisingly uninvited at. Had she said something..?<p>

Nevertheless, she still returned, gently placing the saucer and cup in front of the young man.

"If that will be all—"

"Ah, Yui..?" His voice was so faint, she almost missed it.

"...Nevermind; forget it."

Her gaze lingered for a moment, almost wanting to be concerned, but unsure if that was the proper emotion for the situation. Subaru had always been antsy around Yui, to say the least of it, but this was different. Innerly, Yui berated herself as she walked away, feeling guilty in some shape or form.

The second time she returned to his seat, Subaru was already gone; his bill paid through Kanato and a hefty tip left on the table.

Everyone was acting so oddly today. Perhaps it was the oncoming weekend..? Subaru had said he was previously sick, too…

Thoughts continued to swirl about Yui's head, not stopping once she clocked out of work or when she boarded the bus home. Her mind continued as she entered her apartment and lolled about the rooms as if searching for something. It was only when she was safely within her bed sheets did everything else drown out—did everything else simply fade into nothingness. All that mattered was sleep.

_Maybe tomorrow will be better._


End file.
